abstract: Stories concerning Minamoto no Yoshitsune, one of Japan's best known and most tragic heroes, are numerous and varied. From his birth to his death, nearly every episode of Yoshitsune's life has been retold in war tales, histories, and plays. One of the major and most influential retellings of the Yoshitsune legend is found in Gikeiki, a text from the fifteenth century. This study looks at the early period of the legend and specifically focuses on the Kibune episode, when Yoshitsune lived and trained at Kurama Temple. It provides a new translation of the episode as told in Gikeiki and discusses the different portrayals of Yoshitsune within the Gikeiki textual lineage and in previous and subsequent works of literature. The thesis also takes a brief look at the development of Gikeiki texts; it shows the malleability of the Yoshitsune legend and the Gikeiki text and discusses the implications that this malleability has on our understanding of the place of Gikeiki and the legend of Yoshitsune within the medieval Japanese cultural consciousness. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Asian Languages and Civilizations 2014

每個國家都有跨越時代廣為流傳的英雄傳說，思考這些歷史人物因何為人愛戴，他們的形象又是如何被塑造等問題無疑會幫助我們加強對這個國家的瞭解。在眾多日本英雄人物中，源義經（1159-1189）作為一個家喻戶曉的悲劇英雄不但一直受日本國民的懷念，而且給人們提供了無限的想像空間。從中世至現在，關於源義經的歷史記述及文藝作品多不勝數，從這些作品中我們可窺見其形象在不同時代的變遷。考察源義經形象的變遷，有助我們瞭解日本不同時代的思潮。本研究以德川時代源義經的人物歷史及文化想像為切入點，透過文獻及文藝作品看其形象如何被塑造及探討這種塑造背後的歷史意義。 / 迄今為止，關於源義經的研究甚多，但這些研究多是針對源義經人物自身，集中在他的虛實以及人物傳說方面。本論文研究對象也是源義經，但考察的不僅是源義經這一獨立的人物形象，更想要通過源義經的人物形象變遷探究德川時代的政治思想及中日關係。透過對德川時期源義經形象的考察，筆者認為義經形象在德川時期的文學及文藝吸收許多中世時期的元素，同時有了更多元化的發展。而這時期義經形象在傳說中更是有了新的突破，從單純的民眾憐惜義經而產生的想像變相成為政治發聲的媒介。 / 源義經形象在德川時期主要可分為三個方面：一是風流公子形象，二是智者仁君形象，三是征服外夷形象。而這三種形象背後的原因及歷史作用可分為四個方面：一是江戶時期町人文化及出版業的興盛，二是源義經形象中反映的日本對中國文化的吸收，三是幕府對外政策的催化作用，四是德川思潮與義經形象的緊密關聯。 / Every nation enjoys widespread legends about heroes that have sustained through the history. To figure out how these heroes are created and how they won affections from general public would undoubtedly help us have a better understanding of a nation. / As one of the well known heroes in Japan, Minamoto no Yoshitsune is one of the most missed ones and brings Japanese people endless reveries, which can be seen in lots of literary works and historic records. Minamoto no Yoshitsune’s images have been changing during different periods. His pathetically tragic life and those imaginative legends about him both have attracted the scholarly attention in Japan and the beyond. However, his images during Tokugawa period have yet to be systematically explored and summarized. This paper aims at discussing the causes that create Minamoto no Yoshitsune 's image and probes into the social background and historical significance of the images by investigating the literatures and legends in Tokugawa period. / Based on a great number of documents on Minamoto no Yoshitsune, researchers mostly concentrate further on the fiction and legend stories of this character. This paper not only briefly focuses on his historical images, but also aims to explore the political and ideological trend as well as the Sino-Japan relationship in Tokugawa Era. Through researches, it is demonstrated that the image of Minamoto no Yoshitsune, which is shown in Tokugawa period has absorbed literature and art elements from Medieval Times. By the influence of the cultural innovation, his character has greatly achieved a pluralistic development. In addition, his image in legend stories has dramatically changed from a pathetic hero to a media of political claims. / Moreover, the images of Minamoto no Yoshitsune in Tokugawa period can be concluded in three categories: a romantic playboy, a kindhearted and wise man, and a courageous conqueror. Behind these three different roles, the social background and historical significance can be analyzed from four aspects: first, the flourish of Chonin culture and publishing industry; second, the adoption from Chinese culture; third, the influence of foreign policy by Shogunate; fourth, the interaction between Tokugawa ideology and Yoshitsune’s images. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / 丁依若. / Parallel title from English abstract. / Thesis (M.Phil.) Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2015. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 104-109). / Abstracts also in Chinese. / Ding Yiruo.

In her doctoral thesis the author would like to present the play Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry trees (Yoshitsune senbonzakura) as a unique piece of Japanese drama which has a great complexity and an outstanding place within the corpus of Japanese literature. Even if the play can be compared to Chushingura mono in its importance, Yoshitsune senbonzakura has not been widely translated to western languages. There are two exceptions, however: the English translation (Jones, Jr. 1993) and the German translation (Klopfenstein 1982). While comparing the two translations and using the most full original texts available (as preserved in Takeda Izumo and Namiki Sosuke Joruri Collection and Yuda Yoshio's Bunraku Joruri Collection), the author's goal is to present the play to Czech readers and its interpretation to Czech scholars. As for the flow and structure of the interpretation of Yoshitsune senbonzakura the author begins with the historical background of the legend of Minamoto Yoshitsune, capturing the life of Yoshitsune from the time of Heiji rebellion (1159) when he was born to his death in 1189. Next the author concentrates on the legend itself as it evolved within the course of Japanese literature. With a shift from the court literature of Heian period towards the battlefield stories and...

In her doctoral thesis the author would like to present the play Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry trees (Yoshitsune senbonzakura) as a unique piece of Japanese drama which has a great complexity and an outstanding place within the corpus of Japanese literature. Even if the play can be compared to Chushingura mono in its importance, Yoshitsune senbonzakura has not been widely translated to western languages. There are two exceptions, however: the English translation (Jones, Jr. 1993) and the German translation (Klopfenstein 1982). While comparing the two translations and using the most full original texts available (as preserved in Takeda Izumo and Namiki Sosuke Joruri Collection and Yuda Yoshio's Bunraku Joruri Collection), the author's goal is to present the play to Czech readers and its interpretation to Czech scholars. As for the flow and structure of the interpretation of Yoshitsune senbonzakura the author begins with an analysis of the historical background of the legend of Minamoto Yoshitsune, capturing the life of Yoshitsune from the time of Heiji rebellion (1159) when he was born to his death in 1189. Next the author concentrates on the legend itself as it evolved within the course of Japanese literature. With a shift from the court literature of Heian period towards the battlefield...